


Not Easy Being Green

by rhodrymavelyne



Series: A Hopeless Situation [19]
Category: Angel: the Series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-26
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-17 05:14:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 826
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29712195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhodrymavelyne/pseuds/rhodrymavelyne
Summary: Inspired by Harmony's speech, Andrew paints himself green and dresses up to cast that special spell special which will create a splash, only to find someone greener, spikier, and with a sob story he can't avoid.
Series: A Hopeless Situation [19]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/377794
Kudos: 1





	Not Easy Being Green

**Author's Note:**

> This is Part 19 of my ongoing story A Hopeless Situation. It takes place during the third season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer before Faith allies herself with Mayor Wilkes. I don’t own Buffy but the characters take up residence in my imagination from time to time.

First thing to do was to paint his face green. All part of sympathetic magic, trying to be like the entity Andrew was taking on the aspect of. Yes, it was a bit brighter than the forest verdure of the Wicked Witch of the West, but Andrew thought it looked better, a bit more cheerful. 

Once done, he washed his hands, slipping on the black dress, and put the matching hat with the buckle on his head. On his feet were stripped socks with ruby slippers. Andrew had paid a fortune for these on e-bay, even though he was pretty sure they weren’t the original ruby slippers. No way could he have afforded them. Every gay guy and half the girls wanted those shoes and were willing to pay a fortune for them. Even exact copies were going for three digits. 

Andrew had managed to get a good bargain, all things considering. Ah, well, this was for the school play. This was for glory and beautiful wickedness, to quote the character he was emulating. 

Once he was dressed, he headed backstage, only to bump into Nancy Doyle. 

All right, her paint was better was his. She had actually spikes all over her face which looked real. 

For a moment, Nancy and Andrew stared at each other, taking each other’s measure. 

“All right, the Wicked Witch of the West might have been green, but she had no spikes, even if they’re cool.” Andrew crossed his arms and pouted. “Where’s your black robes and your hat?” 

“Do you think being green is a joke?” She gazed at him in fury. “That it’s all a game?”

“Umm…” Andrew took a step back, intimidated by her intensity. 

Nancy took a step forward. Never had she looked more fierce, advancing upon him. 

“It’s not like you control it. It happens when you sneeze.” Nancy balled her hands into fists as green and prickly as her face. “Is this what happened to Francis? Is this why he disappeared?” 

“Umm,” Andrew repeated, wondering who Francis was. “Maybe?”

Nancy stared at the boy dressed up as a witch with angry eyes. To Andrew’s shock, those eyes filled with tears. 

The green girl threw her arms around Andrew and began to sob. 

“It’s too much!” she wept into his shoulder. “The dead are appearing all over the school! Haven’t you noticed? Why isn’t Francis among them?”

“Um…” Andrew had no idea what to say. This was the second time a girl threw herself at him. He patted her awkwardly. “Maybe Francis isn’t dead?”

“Do you really think so?” She pulled away with wild eyes, which looked all the wilder with her spiky green skin. Almost red. Were they red? “He was a teacher. He was one of the most together people I’d ever met. I always thought he could do better than Harry. Maybe he survived. Maybe he got through this.” She stretched out her hands which were equally spiky. “If anyone could, it’s him.” 

“Maybe,” Andrew ventured, not sure if he should say anything more. 

“It’s not easy being green. I never realized the truth in those words until it happened to me.” She rubbed one of her eyes in an angry, rough motion. “Jim Henson was sending a message to children all over the world through Kermit the Frog when he sang that song! It’s true! No one understands what we go through! All you have to do is cough and suddenly wham! You’re like this!”

“Um…” Andrew wasn’t sure what to say so he patted her some more. He’d always wondered if Nancy Doyle wasn’t a bit crazy. Now he wondered if it wasn’t more than a bit. 

“He may be out there with no one, no one who understands what he’s going through.” Nancy shook her head. “How could he leave without telling us?”

“Um, some things are hard to talk about?” Andrew had no idea what he was saying. “Just what are you talking about?”

“If I did talk, would you listen?” She sniffed again. “I know all kinds of things Buffy Summers doesn’t, even if she does have a Watcher holding her hand and a fledgling witch building her up like she’s the hottest thing since mocha cappucino.”

“Well, mocha cappucinos are tasty,” Andrew ventured, seizing on a part of the conversation he understood. “Don’t you think?”

“You…why are you dressed as the Wicked Witch of the West?” Nancy narrowed her eyes at him, sniffing in almost creepy fashion. It gave Andrew flashbacks of Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter. “You’re stage lighting.”

“Well, it’s a funny story,” Andrew inched back a little, trying to smile. “Come this way and I’ll tell you about it.”

Frowning, Nancy followed him. She didn’t have time to wonder why he was leading her into a broom closet before he whacked her over the head.

“It was a boring conversation any way,” he said, doing his very best to sound like Han Solo.

**Author's Note:**

> When I realized Nancy’s last name was Doyle, I simply couldn’t resist. Those of you whom watched Angel from the beginning know who she’s talking about. :)
> 
> The song, "It's Not Easy Being Green" was sung on The Muppet Show by Kermit the Frog. Jim Henson was the brilliant creator and original puppeteer for Kermit...he is sorely missed.


End file.
